Ok, I know this goes against conventional wisdom in golf, but if there is one place for challenging "pop teachings" this is it.
I'm a hooker. No seriously, I can hook the ball like a madman, sharp snap hooks, with any club. I get below plane and that clubface turns over... fast.
I don't have strong hands and wrists, but after playing for 2 years and learning from reading 5 Lessons and a lot of other golf books, looking at a lot of swing sequences, taking a few odd lessons here and there (all of which made problems worse I might add), I developed my swing as it is today.
But enough background. In order to stop the hooks I've tried everything under the sun. Level shoulders, more left weight, weaker grip (my grip is basically Johnny Miller at this point), swing left, ...even played a round gripping the club like Jim Fuyrk. I still come out of the gate hitting snappers. It's a frustrating way to play golf. Oh, and the shanks have been a blast as well.
Four days ago I had an epiphany. Weaking my grip is not the solution. By weakening the grip so far, with my weak hands and wrists, I am inducing more and more flip into my swing (despite all my best efforts) simply because the left hand is stuck with no strength whatsoever. The grip changes made my problem WORSE, not better, and left me making compensation moves that were unneccessary. I was wearing holes in gloves like crazy, and blisters? Oh man, let me tell you, it's a constant painful struggle. The club began to feel really hard to swing. Very difficult to control. Long clubs felt entirely too heavy, too unwieldly. A constant arc was impossible.
So the epiphany was this. Do the opposite of what every says should be done to fix the hook. Strengthen the left hand back to an orthodox position (two to three knuckles, V at the right shoulder, left thumb more on the right side of the shaft) and leave the right hand in the Johnny Miller position. Give that left hand / wrist the strength it needs to swing the club, stay stable in the swing, and produce a consistent alignment at impact.
The result? Well, despite the fact the grip feels weird, the actual swing of the club is so much more stable it is scary. Driver swing speed is up to 100-105 (from being around 92). I still draw the ball (which is fine), but the ball flight pattern is consistent. When taking my grip, I simply sole the club at my side, grip it with the left hand, and check the V. No more weak grip for me. I just don't have the arm, hand, and wrist strength for it.
I guess the lesson is here that you have to find what works for you, your build, your strengths, your weaknesses, etc. Pop instruction simply sucks. Plain and simple. It's no wonder the best players in the history of the game were for the most part self taught.
I'm a hooker. No seriously, I can hook the ball like a madman, sharp snap hooks, with any club. I get below plane and that clubface turns over... fast.
I don't have strong hands and wrists, but after playing for 2 years and learning from reading 5 Lessons and a lot of other golf books, looking at a lot of swing sequences, taking a few odd lessons here and there (all of which made problems worse I might add), I developed my swing as it is today.
But enough background. In order to stop the hooks I've tried everything under the sun. Level shoulders, more left weight, weaker grip (my grip is basically Johnny Miller at this point), swing left, ...even played a round gripping the club like Jim Fuyrk. I still come out of the gate hitting snappers. It's a frustrating way to play golf. Oh, and the shanks have been a blast as well.
Four days ago I had an epiphany. Weaking my grip is not the solution. By weakening the grip so far, with my weak hands and wrists, I am inducing more and more flip into my swing (despite all my best efforts) simply because the left hand is stuck with no strength whatsoever. The grip changes made my problem WORSE, not better, and left me making compensation moves that were unneccessary. I was wearing holes in gloves like crazy, and blisters? Oh man, let me tell you, it's a constant painful struggle. The club began to feel really hard to swing. Very difficult to control. Long clubs felt entirely too heavy, too unwieldly. A constant arc was impossible.
So the epiphany was this. Do the opposite of what every says should be done to fix the hook. Strengthen the left hand back to an orthodox position (two to three knuckles, V at the right shoulder, left thumb more on the right side of the shaft) and leave the right hand in the Johnny Miller position. Give that left hand / wrist the strength it needs to swing the club, stay stable in the swing, and produce a consistent alignment at impact.
The result? Well, despite the fact the grip feels weird, the actual swing of the club is so much more stable it is scary. Driver swing speed is up to 100-105 (from being around 92). I still draw the ball (which is fine), but the ball flight pattern is consistent. When taking my grip, I simply sole the club at my side, grip it with the left hand, and check the V. No more weak grip for me. I just don't have the arm, hand, and wrist strength for it.
I guess the lesson is here that you have to find what works for you, your build, your strengths, your weaknesses, etc. Pop instruction simply sucks. Plain and simple. It's no wonder the best players in the history of the game were for the most part self taught.
